DCF in turmoil over its handling of abuse allegations

Thursday

Dec 19, 2013 at 6:00 AM

By Paula J. Owen TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

LEOMINSTER — The North Central office of the state Department of Children & Families that was responsible for ensuring the safety of young Jeremiah Oliver, now missing and feared dead, has ranked at the top of the list for years as having the highest caseloads, according to a DCF caseworkers' union spokesman.

The DCF announced it had fired a social worker and a supervisor for failing to verify a report made in June by 5-year-old Jeremiah's day care provider that his mother, Elsa Oliver, had said it was Jeremiah's last day and that he would be leaving for Florida to live with his grandmother. The department had investigated abuse in the Oliver household after it was reported to school officials.

The department has since learned that this information was not appropriately verified by the social worker, who also failed to conduct monthly home visits, as required by department policy. As a result, after both the caseworker and supervisor were fired, a review of their cases has been initiated.

Jason A. Stephany, spokesman for Service Employees International Union Local 509, which represents caseworkers at DCF, said no formal investigation into the actions of the two fired employees was conducted by the DCF before their termination, as required by state law, and a grievance was filed on Tuesday.

Commissioner Olga Roche and her predecessor Anthony McClain signed a memorandum of understanding earlier this year promising that work loads for case-workers would be reduced to 15 or less.

However, in October when the latest data was collected, 30 caseworkers in the North Central office in Leominster have more than 20 cases on their dockets, he said — up from eight workers with more than 20 from that office in 2012. Moreover, 69 workers had more than 18 cases and only two were in compliance with a caseload of 15, he said. The South Central office in Whitinsville is the only other in the state to rank higher, he said.

"The recommended levels that experts agree on as a maximum number of cases that any one social worker can handle is 12 to 15," Mr. Stephany said.

"The state, after years of negotiations and protests, reached an agreement that Department of Children & Families caseworkers would have 15 or fewer cases per worker."

However, Cayenne Isaksen, spokeswoman for DCF, said Jeremiah's case was not about case loads. The social worker failed to carry out basic duties, she said.

"We fully understand how important it is to have a manageable case load," Ms. Cayenne said in an email. "This is not about case loads; it was a failure by the social worker to do their most basic duties and check on the children and families. And their supervisor failed to hold them accountable for this. That's why they both have been terminated."

DCF shares the same goals of helping social workers gain the resources they need to succeed, she added.

"We will continue to work to invest in DCF to ensure that caseloads are manageable now and in the future."

Mr. Stephany wonders when that will happen, and said without immediate action to address the caseload crisis, it is only a matter of time before another tragedy occurs.

Mr. McClain signed a memorandum in March that stipulated caseloads would be reduced, he said, and Ms. Roche signed an addendum to it in July after visiting the North Central office and hearing workers' concerns about caseloads reaching crisis levels.

"The trend is moving in the wrong direction," Mr. Stephany said. "We are disappointed that Commissioner Roche is more interested in finger-pointing than accepting responsibility for yet another tragedy on her watch.

"The sad truth is that caseloads at the Department of Children & Families have long stood at crisis levels, yet Commissioner Roche has done little to address them. Instead, the commissioner has chosen a convenient scapegoat to deflect blame from department administrators — terminating caseworkers without any formal investigation, whatsoever."

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